Blood Contamination
by Shadow38383
Summary: Taking place in the overused Chunin Exams Gaara has an unusual encounter with a certain shy girl. Their meeting leads to an unusual change for her. Don't remember what I wrote entirely so T for safety.
1. Chapter 1

**So...I wrote this about five months ago and decided to upload it. Its set in the over used Chunin Exam saga so if you're tired of it, I'm sorry. Yes, there'll be OOC'ness but when isn't there any in fanfics? Hehe...so if you are reading it, I hope you enjoy, but I don't know if I'll finish it. Let me know what you think I should do, finish or leave as is.**

"So Anko, looks like you decided to go along with torturing the Genin so soon." Kakashi commented.

"Hey, it pays to see their faces cringe." Anko replied, "Now don't distract me, I want to make a flashy entrance."

"Right, well let me know when you're done." Kakashi replied, taking out one of his books.

"I swear I'll get you out of that book one day." Anko mumbled.

"You passed!" said a voice in the building next to them.

"I think that's your cue." Kakashi mumbled.

"By the way, I've been meaning to ask," Anko began, "is Naruto really that dense?"

"You're asking because of Hinata?" Kakashi asked and Anko nodded, "Yes." As soon as Kakashi finished Anko dove in through the window and launched two spears onto the ceiling that spread a banner detailing the beginning of the Second Chunin Exam.

"Alright, listen up maggots!" Anko shouted, "You're in my show now and when I'm done with you I grantee that most of you will be dead!" Silence fell upon the room. 'Damn brats, I expected at least a few of you shaking in fear.' "Just follow me." she commanded clearly annoyed.

Anko led the crowd of Genin to the training ground codenamed the Forest of Death. Among the crowd of Genin stood a timid girl waiting for her chance to make herself visible to her crush. Anko passed out liability wavers for each to sign, which the girl signed without thinking as her mind was elsewhere.

"N-n-naruto." she called out to a blond young man in an orange jumpsuit as he approached.

"Oh, hey Hinata." Naruto greeted, "Can you believe they're making us sign these?"

"O-oh, I know." Hinata laughed nervously, "I've actually got something for you." Hinata pulled out an herbal ointment which Naruto unintentionally ignored as he turned his attention to his team mates.

"Hey, Sakura! Can you believe this?" Naruto called out, referring to the waver as he left. Hinata looked up to realize that Naruto had completely ignored her kind gesture.

'I guess I'll give it to him another time.' she thought with a sigh. Unknown to her, two jade eyes watched the event play out.

'How pathetic.' the owner of the eyes thought to themselves.

Meanwhile, Anko was watching the Genin deliver the wavers.

"Hey Anko." Kakashi greeted.

"Oh, hey Kakashi." Anko replied, "What are you up to?"

"Actually, I thought I'd give you a surprise." Kakashi replied as he grabbed his headband and mask.

"Kakashi! You wouldn't?" Anko asked shocked.

"For you, I would." Kakashi replied as he yanked off his mask and head band in a fashion that was so dramatic, everyone turned to see as Kakashi revealed...

"Another mask and headband?" Sakura asked herself.

"AGH! KAKASHI YOU ASSHOLE!" Anko shouted as Kakashi smiled behind his mask at her, "I CAN'T BELIEVE I FELL FOR THAT STUPID OLD TRICK!" A few genin couldn't hold back their laughter. "HEY! Just for that, we start now! Get to your gates!" Anko commanded with such authority, that the genin scrambled to deliver their wavers and towards their assigned gates.

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"You ready Hinata?" Kiba asked. Hinata nodded and looked over at her other teammate, Shino, for his response. Shino nodded and got ready to burst in.

"All right, you know the rules now." Anko commented, "Get in, get the opposite scroll you have from another team, and get to the tower in the center with both. DO NOT OPEN THEM BEFORE HAND, UNDERSTAND!?" Anko looked at her watch and as soon as it read noon she shouted, "GO!"

The gates opened and every genin dashed forward and disappeared into the forest. Twenty minutes into the forest, Hinata's team stopped for a short break.

"Hey, something's going on in that direction." Kiba commented, "Can you see what it is Hinata?" Hinata nodded and activated her Byakugan.

"I see.." Hinata began.

"What?" Shino asked.

"I'd...rather not say what is over there." Hinata replied with shock before quickly pointing in another direction, "B-but over in that direction there are six large energy chakara's. One is significantly larger than the rest."

"We should check it out." Kiba suggested and he moved forward.

"Hinata," Shino whispered, "what did you see in the other direction?"

"N-naruto...holding hands with Sakura..." Hinata replied with tears in her eyes.

Upon arriving to said location, Hinata and her team were just in time to see the remains of a ninja on the ground and his teammates being crushed by sand.

"That sand..." Kiba commented, "It just reeks of blood, and not the recent." Hinata shivered a bit and looked at the remaining three ninjas.

"Gaara, you crushed the scroll!" one of them commented.

"Kankuro, you can be a real pain." Gaara replied.

"We're supposed to get those scrolls and get out of this stupid forest." Kankuro snapped, "That's never going to happen if you keep pulverizing others to bits while the scroll is still on them!"

"That's enough, let's just get going." the third, female, ninja commented.

"Stay out of this Temari." Kankuro ordered.

"You're getting on my last nerve." Gaara commented.

"Like I care!" Kankuro snapped, "I'll take you on!" Gaara never caught this as his attention was to the bushes nearby.

'Looks like I've got more victims.' he thought to himself as he sent a wave of sand towards it and successfully caught someone.

"What the hell?" Kankuro commented as Gaara used his sand to drag Hinata out of the bushes as she clawed at the ground in an effort to escape. Garra lifted the sand so that it brought Hinata face to face with him.

"Who are you?" he demanded.

"H-h-h-h-hin-n-na-t-t-a." Hinata whimpered. Shino and Kiba stepped out of their cover.

"Let her go." Kiba ordered.

"I think you just cost her, her life!" Gaara commented and turned his hand into a fist, commanding the sand to implode to crush Hinata...but nothing happened.

"Uhhh...I thought you were going to kill her?" Kankuro commented.

"Shut up!" Gaara snapped as he attempted the sand burial again, but this time Hinata started to laugh.

"No, haha, please! Hahah, please stop! Hahaha, that tickles!" Hinata cried out in her laughter.

"WHAT!?" Gaara shouted, "MY SAND DOES NOT TICKLE! IT BRINGS PAIN AND DEATH!"

"Oh it's doing that alright." Kiba teased, "It's going to tickle her to death!" Kiba began to laugh, but was silenced by a pillar of sand that emerged from the ground and knocked the wind out of him.

"This girl is going to pay for the humiliation she caused me!" Gaara commented as he vanished along with Hinata.

"Damn, where'd they go!?" Shino asked.

"Don't look at us." Temari replied, "He's unpredictable at this point."


	2. Chapter 2

Hinata opened her eyes to find herself pinned to a tree by sand.

"Now you pay for my humiliation." Hinata looked up to see a spear made of sand headed for her head. Hinata closed her eyes and braced for the impact, but instead of pain she felt soft silk. She opened her eyes to see Gaara staring at her with shock. "Wha- why-?" Gaara stuttered as he saw the sand around Hinata disperse and let her fall to the ground. By now, Hinata should have run for her life...but curiosity got the best of her as she slowly approached Gaara.

"Umm...a-are you...o-ok?" she asked. His response was a quick grip on her neck which didn't even have threat to it.

"What's going on?" Gaara asked himself. Hinata stood still as Gaara let her neck go and she rubbed it. "Why...Why can't I KILL YOU!?" Gaara shouted as he formed a claw on his arm with the sand and lunged at Hinata, only to have the sand disperse on contact with her skin. Hinata noticed that it was the sand that felt like silk as she also took in the realization that Gaara's hand was on her cheek, causing her to blush.

Gaara couldn't comprehend these sudden actions, just thinking about them made his head spin, so he did the one thing he never thought he'd do. Retreating his hand, he walked over to a nearby stream, sat down, and gave up. An awkward silence took over as Hinata fought in her mind about what she should do.s

'Go to him.' said a voice in her head.

'No!' shouted another voice, 'He'll kill you!'

'Didn't you notice something when you looked into his eyes?' said the first voice, 'Other than surprise?'

'Sorrow...and loneliness...' Hinata thought to herself. With her mind made up, Hinata approached Gaara and sat next to him. She was about to ask a question when Gaara spoke up.

"I'm curious, something I never am, why do you chase him?" he asked emotionlessly.

"Wha-?" Hinata replied in shock.

"I saw you offer him a gift." Gaara continued, "I also saw how easily he ignored you. Why do you try for someone as pathetic as him?" Gaara had no idea where this was coming from, but he sure as hell didn't feel like stopping.

"W-well, I-I admire his s-spirit." Hinata replied, trying to convince herself more so than Gaara.

"Face it." Gaara commented as he faced her, "You know there's no hope there." Hinata knew he was right, all her attempts at getting Naruto to notice were deflected off his thick skull.

"I-I...I know..." Hinata commented, "I saw him h-holding hands...with Sakura." She couldn't take it anymore, and without thinking, she began to cry.

Gaara was petrified. 'Damn, what do I do now?' he thought to himself, 'If I don't stop her, my inner demon will kill her. Wait...why do I care? Ugh! It doesn't matter, just stop her!' Gaara thought quickly and a solution came to his head. Surprising both Hinata and himself, he gently wrapped his arms around her shoulders and hugged her close.

"W-what are you doing?" Hinata asked between sobs.

"I...uhh...I don't even know." Gaara replied, unsure of what he was doing.

Hinata couldn't understand what was going on, but one thing was for sure; it felt good to have a shoulder to cry on...even if it did belong to a ruthless killer. She continued to cry, burying her face into his chest until she eventually, and unintentionally, fell asleep.

Hinata awoke to find herself against Gaara's chest. She eased away and shyly muttered an apology.

Garra nodded, stood, and made his way back into the forest, "You'll find your teammates three hundred meters east...and if you tell anyone about what happened, I'll kill you and everyone you know!" With that said, Gaara vanished leaving Hinata all alone.

Hinata sighed and as she got up, her hand bumped an object next to her. Looking down, Hinata recognized the object as her team's objective, the scroll.

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Anko was chasing down Kakashi. "When I get my hands on you, you are in for a world of PAIN!" Anko shouted. Kakashi simply led her into the forest and hid.

"Let's see if you can find me." Kakashi's voice echoed. Anko carefully checked each and every tree she passed, looking for any type of distortion or clue, until she came to a badly drawn cardboard tree. "Seriously?" She asked, "That's the worst disguise ever."

"No its not." Kakashi replied from behind her as she turned to look at him, "This is." He held up a mask fashioned after Naruto.

"Now you're going to pay." Anko growled.

"Uhh...how about I pay you back with dinner?" Kakashi suggested.

"That depends," Anko replied.

"On what?" Kakashi asked.

"Is it a date?" Anko teased.

"Hmm...I don't know." Kakashi replied, "You'd have to accept to find out."

"Hmm...accept a dinner, date or not, or pummel you to death right now." Anko thought playfully.

"I'll buy you all the dango you want afterwards." Kakashi tempted. Anko's face lit up like a child getting their first present.

"Deal!" She said while jumping up and down causing Kakashi to chuckle.

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"There you are!" Kiba shouted when Hinata came out from behind some trees, "Are you ok? Did that demon hurt you."

"No, and don't call him a demon! You wouldn't like me to call you a mutt would you!?" Hinata snapped, shocking herself, "I-I'm sorry! I-I don't know what-"

"It's ok Hinata." Shino interrupted, "As long as you're safe." Kiba nodded in agreement and Hinata gave them a thankful smile. However, the same question was dominating their minds, 'Why did she defend Gaara?'

"Oh, I've got something for you." Hinata commented to her teammates as she pulled out the scroll.

"How did-?" Kiba asked stunned. Hinata shrugged and smiled.

"Next stop, the tower." Shino commented.

Soon they arrived at the center tower and were preparing to open the scrolls.

"Are you sure we can open them now?" Hinata asked.

"Hmm...probably not." Shino replied.

"What make you say that?" Kiba asked.

"Maybe because there are rooms with our team names on them?" Shino pointed out causing Kiba to crawl to a corner in humiliation. Silence followed after the front door slammed open, revealing Gaara and his siblings.

"Looks like we weren't first." Temari commented.

"It's all Gaara's fault because he took too long." Kankuro commented, "Hey! They're the same one's that had their teammate kidnapped by Gaara!" Hinata couldn't help but give a small wave and smile at Gaara, who seemed unfazed to everyone except Hinata. She could see a small return to her gesture in his eyes, very well hidden from others. With that done, Hinata went into the room designated for her team with her two confused teammates.

"Uhh...any idea what that was about, Gaara?" Temari asked.

"Must've scared her to insanity." Gaara replied, "Let's go, we're wasting time."

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Hinata was standing in a formal formation along with the continuing teams. It's been two days since she and her team arrived at the tower, and now they were in another building back at the village, getting briefed on the details of the next exam portion.

"Quick recap," the Hokage commented, "The battles will be one on one, no time limit, no holds barred, and are in one month. Train hard and may the best ninja win."

"You want to get started, Hinata?" Kiba asked.

"Huh? O-oh, umm...n-not today, Kiba." Hinata replied.

"You sure? You usually train till nightfall." Kiba commented.

"Kiba, there is a limit to everyone," Shino cut in, "and after her encounter with Gaara, I'm sure that she is tired." This was not entirely true, as the fact that when Gaara let her cry her eyes out, it actually left her somewhat refreshed. Looking over at the last spot she saw Gaara, she noticed that not only was he still there, but he quickly turned away as if he'd been looking at her.

"Ok, then we'll see you tomorrow Hinata." Kiba commented. Hinata nodded and her teammates left to train.

"Gaara." Temari called out, waving her hand in his face (or as close as she could).

"Hmm?" Gaara snapped out of his thoughts.

"I said, we're going to go to one of the spare training grounds, you coming?" Temari asked.

"No." Gaara replied flatly. Temari shrugged and followed Kankuro along with the rest of the genin, leaving Gaara behind and alone...or so he thought. As he closed his eyes to think a bit before he left, he noticed a familiar presence in the room, "What do you want?"

"I-I n-n-never got to s-say th-thank you...for what you d-did." Hinata replied. Gaara stared at her, unsure how to react. Never before had he been thanked, mostly because he never did nice things...but this girl just...had a way.

"Well..um...you're...w-wel...come." Gaara replied.

"Umm...I-I was wondering," Hinata began, nervously poking her index fingers together, "...i-if uh...y-you wanted to...u-uh...h-h-help me train?" Gaara continued to stare at her, confused at how she could come up and ask him to train with her. Both stood for an unknown amount of time, making Hinata more nervous with each passing second.

"I-I'm s-s-sorry." Hinata commented, turning to leave, disappointed. Just as she was leaving, she felt a tug at her hand.

"Wait." Gaara pulled Hinata back to him, "I...I'll help you." Hinata smiled brightly at his response and, without thinking, began to pull him along as she led him to one of the vacant training grounds.

'What the hell is going on? Why am I doing this?' Gaara thought to himself on the way.

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"Kakashi!" A voice called out.

"Huh? Oh, hi Iruka." Kakashi greeted, "What brings you here?"

"Well, I wanted to catch you before you left to train Sauske." Iruka replied.

"Oh? And what is it that you need?" Kakashi asked.

"Well, I heard that you went on a date with Anko." Iruka replied.

"Why is that a surprise?"

"Well, you always fool around, but we've never seen you actually show interest in a girl"

"That is not true..."

"Anyways, how'd it go?" Iruka was elbowing Kakashi, "Eh? How'd it go? What happened?"

"We ate at a restaurant, talked, and left." Kakashi replied.

"Th-...that's it?"

"Well, she was enjoying herself and is happy today."

"Really? Are you sure she didn't knock you out and that's how you imagine it went?"

"Ask her yourself." Kakashi replied and motioned toward Anko a few feet away, happily munching on dango.

"Soooo goood." Anko moaned with her mouth full.

"You...bought her dango as your dinner date?" Iruka asked.

"No, we went on a dinner date...I just bought her all the dango she wanted afterwards..." Kakashi replied.

"Wow, you must be broke." Iruka commented.

"Actually...I'm homeless because of that." Kakashi shrugged.

"YOU'RE HOMELESS AND YOU DON'T CARE!?" Iruka shouted.

"Actually, he'll be staying with me until he gets back on his feet." said a voice behind them. Both turned to see Anko behind them.

"Are you sure, Anko?" Kakashi asked.

"Sure!" Anko replied, "It's a guy's paradise too! Do whatever you want, except take without permission, and we don't need to clean unless your path is restricted."

"Anko..." Kakashi fell to his knees and grabbed her hand (playfully mind you, Kakashi kneels for no one except out of custom! ...or maybe just for Anko), "You are a blessing!"

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"I thought we were going to one of the training grounds." Gaara commented in his usual emotionless voice. He stood next to a tree waiting for Hinata's response as she neared two graves.

"I-I'm sorry." Hinata replied, "I-I just wanted t-to pay my r-respects while w-we were nearby." Gaara nodded and waited for her as she approached the graves. Gaara noticed that one of the grave's tombstone was actually a sword. Hinata's gasp startled him out of his thoughts. Looking up, Gaara saw Hinata on the ground pushing herself back and away from the grave with the sword. Gaara directed his attention to the grave and saw that a hand was jutting out of the ground in front of it.

'Wait, someone is crawling out of the ground!?' Gaara thought to himself. The hand grabbed the ground and pulled the rest of the body up, gasping for breath. Gaara was shocked, but he couldn't tell whether it was from the fact that he had just seen what is quite possibly a zombie crawl out of his grave or the fact that Hinata was hugging him out of fear.

"Wha- what happened?" the 'zombie' asked.

"Who are you?" Gaara asked, unconsciously placing and arm protectively around Hinata.

"I should be the one asking the questions!" the figure demanded.

"Don't test me." Gaara growled, raising sand around the figure in a threatening way.

"Hmm? Ahhh, Gaara of the Desert." the figure commented, "I've heard the rumors of you, how you have a demon inside you, just like that Uzumaki kid. You and I are somewhat alike you know. I was known as the Demon of the Hidden Mist."

"Hmm...Zabuza, am I right?" Gaara commented, "I heard about you. Killed by nothing but weaklings."

"It was not the weaklings that killed me, it was the blood loss." Zabuza replied coldly, "Had Kakashi not incapacitated me so thoroughly, I may have still been alive."

"Care to explain how that statement turned out as a paradox?" Gaara asked.

"No idea." Zabuza replied.

"I believe I can answer that." said a voice behind them.

"So, come to kill me again, Kakashi?" Zabuza commented while turning to face him.

"That depends, do you plan on killing anyone?" Kakashi asked.

"Only if they plan on doing the same." Zabuza replied.

"Fair enough, as for your situation, I believe Hinata can explain." Kakashi commented. Everyone turned to Hinata. Gaara broke away quickly feeling his face get warm, and saw Hinata blush.

'Weird," he thought to himself, 'when did it get so warm around here? it's hotter than back home...'

"Well Hinata?" Kakashi asked.

"Umm...w-well...N-naruto told me about what happened and...I-I..." Hinata was beginning to cry, "I-I just...wanted to help..." Gaara held her close again, earning a questioning look from Kakashi.

"I found that this calms her," Gaara replied, "and if you tell anyone, I'll kill you. Now what did she do?"

"Point taken," Kakashi replied, "as for what she did...well she has been practicing a forbidden jutsu to bring Zabuza and Haku back."

"Then why am I the only one here?" Zabuza snapped.

"She's still young, so she doesn't possess enough chakara for two." Kakashi explained, "It was a damn miracle she even pulled it off with you."

"Damn...so what are you going to do, Kakashi?" Zabuza asked, "About the fact that she did this?"

"Her intentions were pure, but there's still the fact that she broke the law on forbidden jutsu..." Kakashi replied, "still, I suppose I can let it go this time. In a way you're her zombie so I'm assigning you to watch her back."

"What!?" Zabuza snapped.

"I'm not asking you to stay with her at all times, just make sure she's safe." Kakashi explained, "You know, check in on her every now and then."

"...fine, but you owe me, I don't come free." Zabuza replied.

"Umm...that'll be a problem..." Kakashi replied, "I'm broke."

"Then no deal." Zabuza replied.

"Hey you owe her, she brought you back!" Kakashi replied.

"...fine, but you'll still owe me. A bottle of sake will do." Zabuza replied.

"Deal." Kakashi accepted, "Now if you don't mind, I have to finish preparations for training Sauske." With that, Kakashi disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"So...I-I'm not in t-trouble?" Hinata asked.

"Not at the moment." Zabuza replied, "So why were you here, Gaara?"

"I was on my way to train with Hinata when she brought me here..." Gaara trailed off as he realized that Hinata was still holding on to him. He cleared his throat and Hinata jumped back as she looked up at him and apologized repeatedly as she hid her blush.

"U-umm...I-I would still l-like to train...b-but it's getting late." Hinata commented.

"I don't sleep, so if you still want to train, I can stick around." Gaara replied.

"Hehe, looks like even we demons have a soft spot." Zabuza commented, causing Gaara to stare at him coldly.

After a few minutes they had arrived at a vacant training ground, Gaara and Hinata took to the middle while Zabuza watched from a nearby tree.

"Whenever you're ready." Gaara commented with his eyes closed. Hinata activated her Byakugan and charged forward, viciously attacking at Gaara's protective sand as it blocked each hit. Hinata thought she should practice with heavier blows so she put in more strength and chakara in her hits. Suddenly, Gaara grabbed her wrist mid attack.

"You need to plan your attack more." he commented, "While you should avoid a predictable pattern, you also need to avoid attacking randomly, otherwise you won't hit anyone."

"O-oh..." Hinata replied with a smile, "ok, I'll try." Gaara let her wrist go and she began another assault, however this one would've actually surprised the average ninja.

"Not bad." Zabuza commented, causing Gaara to open his eyes and Hinata to stop in her tracks, "But I suggest you use your tools more often as well."

"Hmm...he's right." Gaara replied.

"Here." Zabuza tossed Hinata his sword, stabbing into the ground at her feet, "Try it." Hinata turned to look at Gaara.

"Go ahead, my sand can handle anything." Gaara commented. Hinata timidly reached for the hilt of the great sword and gently gripped it, slowly pulling it out to get used to its weight, and swung it as hard as she could. As predicted, Gaara's sand stopped the blade, but not before it chipped the defenses.

"Nice swing," Zabuza commented, "but you still need practice. How long do you plan on helping her?"

"If she can break a small hole in my sand defense, she'll be ready." Gaara replied.

"Let's get started then." Zabuza commented.

Hinata took a surprise swing which, as it sounds, surprisingly cut Gaara's cheek. Hinata gasped, "I-I-I'm so sorry!" She ran up to Gaara and checked to see if she hurt him badly. Hinata let out a sigh of relief when she saw that it was only a small cut, though it bled a bit.

"Something's not right..." Gaara commented, "My sand should have been able to block that...huh?" Gaara took notice that there was more blood than there should have been. "Hinata, your hand."

"Huh?" Hinata lifted her right hand, which was on Gaara's cut to stop any bleeding, and noticed that she had unintentionally cut herself with the sword when she dropped it to go up to Gaara. "I-I'm ok."

"Alright, let's try again." Zabuza commented. Hinata swung the sword again and this time, Gaara's sand reacted like normal and blocked the sword.

"Hmm...I'll figure out what's wrong later, we're wasting time trying to figure it out." Gaara commented.


	3. Chapter 3

'Ok.' Hinata thought to herself, 'I can do this. I'm stronger, more confident, and I'll have Gaara nearby. I even got rid of my stuttering,' Hinata repeated these words in her head until she reached the ground floor of her home.

"HINATA!" a voice shouted, murdering her confidence.

"Ahh! Y-yes f-f-father?" Hinata replied, 'So much for my stutter free speech...'

"Neji will be participating, as you know, so I hope to hear that you didn't embarrass me by showing that you are a failure!" her father snapped.

"Y-yes father." Hinata replied and left her house with her head hanging. After walking a few minutes, the building that would hold part one of the exam finals came into view. 'I really hope I can do this.'

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"Hey, she here yet?" Zabuza asked.

"...no." Gaara replied.

"She's got a thing for you, you know."

"Feh, nothing more than her shyness."

"Oh really? Then how do you explain that it took her the entire month to show satisfying results?"

"She's slow to learn."

"Think what you want, but you can't deny it forever. I've seen the way you act around her."

"Whatever. By the way, where have you been staying? Not like I care."

"I know, as for where I'm staying...well I've been staying at the training grounds that you two went to everyday."

"I can imagine the looks you're going to get when everyone here sees you back from the dead."

"I'll be sure to put on a good show." The sound of a door opening made them turn their attention to the figure at the door.

"You're late Hinata." Zabuza commented.

"I-I'm sorry." Hinata replied.

"I thought we fixed your stuttering?" Zabuza asked.

"Ah, w-well...m-my father..." Hinata replied.

"Enough said." Gaara interjected. Another door opened and a blond and pink haired girl raced inside, not noticing the others.

"Hehehe, watch this." Zabuza commented as he disappeared. Hinata turned to see what Zabuza saw.

"Ino and Sakura?" she asked herself. Sakura noticed Hinata and, more importantly, Gaara right next to her.

"AHH! Hinata, look out!" Sakura shouted as she and Ino jumped in between them.

"What were you planning to do to sweet, little, innocent Hinata you freak!?" Ino questioned. Hinata felt something unstoppable take over as she walked around Sakura, right up to Ino, and slapped her. Ino was frozen with shock as Hinata glared at her.

"I appreciate the fact that you came to my defense, even if it wasn't really necessary since Gaara wasn't going to do anything," Hinata snapped, "but one thing I will not stand for is you or anyone else calling him a freak!"

"You...weren't going to do anything to her?" Sakura asked. Gaara shook his head, his appearance unfazed by the event, but on the inside he was shocked that Hinata had come to his defense.

"H-hinata...I'm sorry!" Ino apologized.

"I'm not the one you should apologize to!" Hinata snapped. Ino quickly turned and apologized to Gaara.

"Thank you Ino." Hinata commented, feeling the rush die down. Ino nodded and gave her a smile before returning to their original spot.

"Wow, I never thought Hinata could do that!" Ino commented.

"Ino, you should know just as well as I that she did that for a reason." Sakura replied with a wink.

"Ohh!" Ino squealed, "Little Hinata has found a new crush!"

"A tough crush." Sakura added.

"I don't know, I think he likes her." Ino replied.

"Why do you say that?" Sakura asked. Her question was answered when she looked over at Hinata to see her laughing while Gaara stood as usual...yet...looking really closely, Sakura could make out a very small smile. Small, but genuine.

Suddenly the room began to grow misty, then a fog completely took over. Ino and Sakura met back to back as they scanned the area.

"What's going on!? I can't see more than two feet!" Sakura exclaimed, "Hinata! Are you ok!?" No response.

"S-sakura? What is that?" Ino asked. Sakura turned to see a figure in the fog approaching them, carrying a great sword.

"N-n-no! It- it can't be!" Sakura cried out.

"Oh, but it is." the figure called out.

"Z-z-z-zab-uza!?" Sakura squeaked, "Y-you're supposed to b-be dead!"

"I've come to haunt you." Zabuza replied, "You and your friend."

"Whoa, wait!" Ino cried out, "Just haunt her! I'm not her friend!"

"Oh thanks a lot!" Sakura snapped.

"Too late!" Zabuza shouted as he swung his sword toward the two screaming girls, hugging each other in fear.

Both Ino and Sakura opened their eyes after a while when they heard laughing...evil laughing.

"H-hinata?" Sakura asked as the fog disappeared. Hinata looked up, surprised at the shocked looks that the others were giving her.

"W-what? W-why are you looking at me like that?" she asked.

"Did anyone else hear that...or did I imagine it?" Ino asked.

"W-what?" Hinata asked.

"Never mind." Zabuza commented, "The others are arriving." As if on cue, Kakashi came in through the doors with Anko piggybacking on him.

"...now that's something you don't see everyday." Ino commented.

"Sensei! Do you know where Sauske is?" Sakura asked.

"He'll be here later." Kakashi replied, "Oh, hey Zabuza."

"Hey." Zabuza replied.

"What the hell!?" Sakura cried out, "He really is alive!? AND YOU KNEW!?"

Zabuza simply stared at her and turned to Kakashi, "How does her team function?"

"Uhh...they get by." Kakashi replied.

"HEY GUYS!" Naruto shouted while walking through the doors.

"And here comes the annoying one." Zabuza commented, "How the hell did I lose to you?"

"ZABUZA!?" Naruto cried out in surprise.

"The demon fox." Kakashi replied.

"Oh, right...got to admire his spirit though." Zabuza commented.

"Ho- he- I- whe-?" Naruto sputtered.

"Just deal with it." Gaara commented, 'It would take a month to explain to you how he's here, and even then your pathetic excuse for a brain wouldn't understand."

"...what?" Naruto asked and everyone face palmed, "Hi Sakura!"

"Even trying to communicate with him is a waste of breath!" Garra muttered.

"Hi Naruto, why don't you go say hi to the others?" Sakura replied while her inner self shouted in her head, 'GET AWAY ALREADY YOU ANNOYING BASTARD!"

"Uhh...ok." Naruto replied as he approached Hinata, "Oh hey Hinata! ...Hinata? ..." Everyone turned to see Hinata standing in place with her head tilted downward to conceal her eyes with her bangs.

"She's going to faint now isn't she?" Ino asked.

"Yep." Sakura replied.

"That...doesn't sound like fainting." Kakashi commented as a sound came from Hinata, slowly getting louder.

"...is she...laughing?" Anko asked. Hinata continued to laugh...in a creepy way, while Gaara approached her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Hinata." he called her as he gave her a light shake, causing Hinata to look up.

"Huh? W-wha-? Gaara?" she asked blushing as she realized that Gaara had his hand on her.

"Hinata, are you feeling alright?" Anko asked as she approached her.

"Huh? Umm...y-yes...t-thank you." Hinata replied with a bow.

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The next exam portion began with the semifinals, Naruto and Kiba were the first with the victory going to Naruto.

"Next match will be...Sakura and Ino."

"So, Gaara." Temari commented, "I hear that you got a girlfriend now."

"I would choose you next words carefully," Gaara replied, "Unless you want to see our Uncle already."

"Umm...o-ok, no need to get deadly..." Temari replied, "I just want to know, why did you agree to help her?"

"...no reason." Gaara replied and turned back to watch Sakura and Ino fight.

"Come on...you can tell your big sister." Temari commented.

"I told you before, I don't care if you're my siblings, I'll kill you both the same." Gaara repeated.

Temari turned away defeated when a thought came to her mind. "...it's because she knows what it's like to be alone...isn't it? I've heard what she's like." Temari looked at Gaara but he didn't budge, yet...she could see something react, "I guessed it, right?" Gaara didn't reply and watched as Ino and Sakura knocked each other out.

"Match over, neither genin moves on to the next round."

"How pathetic." Gaara commented.

"Next match will be...Anko and Kakashi?"

"Very funny Anko." Kakashi commented.

"Oh come on, it'll be fun!" Anko replied.

"Anyway, the real, next match will be...Hinata and Neji."

"Well this'll be over quick." Neji commented as he stepped into the arena. Hinata looked over at Gaara and he gave a reassuring nod. Hinata smiled and jumped down, confidence restored.

"Today is the day I will show what a worthless heir you are!" Neji commented, crushing Hinata's confidence, "why of all people, were you picked? You, the weakest of our clan!" Gaara looked over at Zabuza and he nodded. "I'm going to put you out for good." Neji continued as he activated his byakugan and took his stance, "Get ready!"

Hinata was about to activate her own when Zabuza's sword stabbed the ground in front of her.

"Go ahead," Zabuza commented as she looked up at him, "I agree that there is a lot of worthless trash around here, but after seeing you in action when you were training I know you're not part of that pile." Hinata nodded at grabbed the blade by the hilt.

"I'm ready." she commented.

"Begin!"

Hinata pulled the blade up, but blacked out. Neji took the chance created by her sudden stop and struck her into the wall.

"Heh, over in five seconds." He commented as he turned to leave the arena and Hinata fell facedown.

"Is that it?" a voice commented behind him, "I thought it would hurt more."

'What!?" Neji turned to see Hinata getting to up, her head looked like it weighed more than the rest of her body as she never lifted it.

"I've had enough with people looking at me as the weak one." Hinata commented as she walked toward Neji, dragging the sword behind her and her head still hanging, "Its time I fixed that." Neji only got a split second glimpse at her eyes when she looked up, but it was enough to see that they had become empty, yet they held a psychotic/murderous intention. Before he could do anything, Neji was sent into the opposite wall.

'When- when did she get so strong!?' he asked himself.

"Hmm...Hinata's not herself." Gaara commented, 'You wouldn't happen to have anything to do with this, would you?'

'Possibly.' the demon inside him replied, 'If you think her blood mixing with our own means that I'm involved.'

'What did you do?' Gaara asked him.

'Nothing, but a little of me may...hehe or should I say, DID get inside her.' the demon replied. Gaara snapped back to see Neji dodge a swing of the blade aimed at his neck, causing the sword to get jammed in the wall.

'How the hell did she get this power?' Neji thought to himself as Hinata looked up at him, bloodlust clear in her eyes, as she attempted to free the sword from the wall.

"What's the matter Neji?" she asked with a smirk, "I'm wide open, why don't you attack?"

"What?" Neji asked confused, but quickly regained himself and lunged forward. Just as he was about to finish Hinata off, the sword broke free and Neji had just enough time to dodge backwards before it could gut him.

"Looks like you lost your chance you fool!" Gaara taunted and looked back at Hinata, "I expected a real surprise."

"I acted too early, don't pressure me!" Hinata snapped.

"Hehe, I'm starting to like this girl." Gaara said to himself.

"You know why she's acting this way?" Zabuza asked.

"The day that she cut me wasn't an accident." Gaara replied, "The demon let it happen so that he would cause a little chaos, by having some of my blood mix with hers in her body."

"Well...it does give her a new edge," Zabuza commented, "but won't there be any side effects?"

"So far it's just her personality." Gaara replied as Neji continued to dodge Hinata's attack.

"What's the matter? You're getting slow." Hinata taunted before Neji managed to disarm her.

"EIGHT TRIAGRAMS! SISXTY-FOUR PALMS!" Neji shouted as he executed his attack and sent Hinata into the wall before she fell motionless to the floor. "I-it's over." Neji panted before Hinata suddenly lunged at him, hit him with the blunt side of the sword, and sent him into the wall before following it up with a straight punch to his gut. Hinata held her position as her punch's effect spread out through Neji's body before letting him drop to the ground and raising the sword over her head in an execution style.

"How weak am I now?" she mocked happily before swinging the sword down, but rather than beheading Neji, the sword jammed into the ground with the blade only coming close to his neck.

"Th-the winner i-is Hinata."

'Looks like I don't have complete influence over her.' Gaara's demon commented, 'She still shows mercy to her opponent.'

'Oh well.' Gaara thought casually. Hinata was still standing over Neji with her head hanging, but she wasn't looking at him. She suddenly snapped out of her trance and looked around before her eyes landed on Neji.

"Neji! I-I'm sorry, I-I didn't mean to hurt you!" she exclaimed as she removed the sword and tried to help him up, but Neji pushed her away.

"You don't need to rub your victory in by mocking me!" he replied as he forcefully walked himself out of the building. Hinata sadly made her way back to Zabuza, giving him the sword with a bow and a "thank you", before heading outside.

"Next round will be Gaara and Rock Lee."

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"How did I do that back there? Why did I do that?" Hinata asked herself.

"Weak." a voice whispered, causing Hinata to search in all directions for the source.

"Wh-who said that?" she asked.

"Revenge." the voice whispered.

"Hey." another voice called out, causing Hinata to jump out of surprise then quickly spin around to find Zabuza behind her, "You alright?" he asked.

"U-umm, y-yes." Hinata replied, "W-what are you doing here, umm...if I may ask?"

"I could ask you the same thing. I'm hired to check in on you since I owe you, remember?" Zabuza replied.

"You don't have to." Hinata said softly.

"Like I said, I owe you." Zabuza replied, "I prefer to be even, so this is how I'm paying you back...beside, I've already received the down payment from Kakashi's side."

"...do you know what happened to me?" Hinata asked.

11111111

'Don't tell her.' Gaara's words echoed in Zabuza's mind, 'If she becomes aware of what is inside her and where it came from, it could endanger her...I'd like to see how this turns out.'

'You're just saying that.' Zabuza replied, 'You're just as worried as her sensei and friends.'

'I don't worry about anything and for no one.' Gaara growled.

'Keep telling yourself that.' Zabuza replied, 'Just hope it isn't too late when you accept it.'

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"Zabuza?" Hinata called out, snapping him back to the present.

"Uhh...no, sorry." he replied, "Maybe it's just you growing some back bone."

"Oh..." Hinata replied before the doors swung open and they saw Lee being carried out in a stretcher.

"Looks like the semi-finals are over." Zabuza commented as he looked back at Hinata, "Scream at the top of your lungs in pain if you need me, I'm going to go haunt that pink haired girl." With that, Zabuza took his leave and left Hinata alone. She was about to head home when her squad mates ran up to her.

"Hey Hinata...you uhh...did real good against Neji!" Kiba complimented, "How'd you get stronger...or even get Zabuza to lend you his sword?"

"Kiba, Zabuza may be ruthless, but he does understand respect," Shino replied, "something Hinata must have earned from him during her training."

"Speaking of which, we heard you trained with Gaara." Kiba continued, "You really went all out to impress Naruto hu-" Kiba was cut when Hinata suddenly punched him in the gut.

"Don't mention that pathetic excuse for a ninja ever again!" she snapped before she blinked a few times and realized what she did, "Kiba! I-I'm so sorry!"

"W-what the hell was that!?" Kiba snapped.

"I...I...I'm sorry!" Hinata cried as she ran away in tears.

"Hinata wait!" Shino called out, 'Something's up.' he thought to himself as he noticed a small dust cyclone on a nearby rooftop.

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'I need to stop this.' Gaara thought to himself.

'Are you kidding me!?' a voice in his head laughed, 'This is too much fun! Did you see the look on that guys face when she punched him!? It's for the best, now she had a back bone.'

'She ran crying, she doesn't want this!' Gaara snapped.

'Its too late.' the demon interrupted, 'She has to either take control of the power I gave her, which will make her more confident and be able to say no when she has to, or let it over take her, in which case she'll turn into what we saw today at her fight. Either way, her inner struggle for power will be entertaining.'


	4. Chapter 4

**Just a short update for now. I can't believe how many follows have gone to this story! I never thought this would get some people's attention, but to those who it has, thank you for taking an interest and I'll try to get updates as quick as possible...meaning it may be at the speed of Silence Broken and Chief Vault Hunter because of college...anyways, enjoy!**

"Wha- what is happening to me!?" Hinata whispered to herself as she walked aimlessly in the dark, unaware of where she was or where she was going, "I-I won the match, but…I really hurt Neji…and Kiba!"

"Exactly." a voice laughed. Hinata looked around to find herself in the middle of a forest, all alone.

"H-hello?" she called out before feeling her head jerk to the side.

"Finally!" she snapped, "I was wondering when I would be able to talk this way!" Hinata jerked back, she looked around in fear to find the source of the voice, not realizing the truth.

"Wh-who are you!? Where are you!?" she asked fearfully before her hear turned to face another direction on its own.

"You still don't get it!? I'm you stupid! I'm your little tough side that you kept out of reach from yourself!" the her voice replied, "You didn't pay attention when I was just a whisper in your head so I had to force my way out! Thanks to you boyfriend's demon, I was able to come out!" Hinata's head jerked back and she held it in her hands.

"N-no! Go away!" she shouted fearfully, "Y-you're the one who hurt Kiba and Neji aren't you!" Hinata's head turned to her right.

"…nnnooo, that was actually you." her voice replied casually, "After all, it's your body. I didn't come out and move you like a puppet, I just…gave a little push."

"Liar!" Hinata snapped.

"Ok, yes I lied." Her voice laughed then casually added, "You know, this way of communication isn't any better. We still look like a person who's lost it, what with us literally snapping back at our self here."

"Stop!" Hinata shouted. Silence ensued and she looked around as if she's just stopped the passage of time with her shout.

Her relief was short lived as her voice once again came on its own and whispered, "No." Hinata fell over on her knees then to the ground as if she were trying to shield a small animal as she held her hands on her head.

"Leave me alone!" she cried, "What do you want!?"

"…everything." Her voice whispered. Hinata gasped and her eyes shot wide open in fear as her voice continued at a normal volume, "You've been leading our life and setting us up for nothing but the backseat in every conflict that could benefit us! Soon the sweet, innocent, and powerless Hinata will be a memory…and everyone who saw us that way will know the new tough, powerful, no bullshit Hinata." Hinata shook her head, trying to convince herself that the conversation wasn't happening before the voice added, "Oh, and you know why you really hang around Gaara? It's because deep down inside, you prefer a man who has power and will use it ruthlessly…then again, that will be your new public known preference, won't it?"

"No!" Hinata cried before falling over.

Before she blacked out, her voice whispered one last statement, "At least you did one thing right and found a great guy for me."

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"You ever wonder why they split the exams so far apart?" Anko asked as she and Kakashi sat at the roof of the Academy.

"Not really." Kakashi replied without looking up from his book, "It's to give the participants time to prepare after all, isn't it?"

"…I know." Anko replied as she looked out over the village while taking a bite of her dango.

"Then why'd you ask?" Kakashi asked and Anko shrugged.

"Guess I just wanted to talk about something." She replied, "So what do you make of what happened to Hinata?" Kakashi paused before he closed his book and put it away.

"…I don't know…" he said seriously, "If I had to guess, it probably has something to do with Gaara. Hinata has been around him for longer than we'd like."

"…speaking of Hinata and Gaara, where are they?" Anko asked, "No one's seen them since the end of the preliminaries."

"Gaara's looking for Hinata." A voice replied. Anko and Kakashi turned to see Zabuza stab his sword into the roof before taking a seat next to them, "Last I saw her she was walking around aimlessly."

"…well aren't you just doing a splendid job of looking after her." Kakashi said sarcastically.

"I told her to scream in pain if she needed help." Zabuza replied before looking at Anko and Kakashi to see them both staring at him, "…fine, I'll go look for her."

11111111111111

Gaara observed Hinata from a distance, watching with a smirk as she argued with herself.

'Told you it'd be hilarious.' The demon said.

'As amusing as it is, we can't let her be overtaken by herself.' Gaara replied.

'Why not?' the demon asked, 'She's a hell of a lot better now…don't tell me, you've actually developed feelings for her?' Gaara remained silent. 'HAHAHA! You pathetic fool!' the demon mocked.

'ENOUGH!' Gaara snapped before he came out of hiding and walked up to Hinata's limp body, noticing that she had passed out from the conflict with herself. He stood over her, looking down as her tear streaked face and he couldn't help but smile, 'Still…it's fun to see her suffer this way.' Gently he picked Hinata up and began to walk to her home, at least until Hinata stirred, snuggled into his chest, then fell into a deep slumber. Gaara stood frozen and mesmerized as he looked down at her face which was now relaxed and at peace. He sighed in frustration before he continued to walk, 'What am I doing?' Upon reaching Hinata's house, Gaara saw her father at the door, waiting for Hinata to come home. Rather than go up to him and toss him his daughter, Gaara went around and climbed into Hinata's room through her window, before setting her down on her bed. Once that was done, he turned to leave when something pulled him back. Gaara turned to see that Hinata had grabbed his hand in her sleep…and it was not a loose grip. He tried to pry her hand off of his, but as he did Hinata began to look like she was having a nightmare. He sighed and took a seat next to her bed, thinking that she would eventually let go…a thought that lasted three hours.

'God damn it, let go already!' He screamed in his head, but instead Hinata's grip tightened slightly, as if needing assurance that he was there…though she didn't know. Twenty minutes passed and Gaara's patience snapped almost audibly. He stood straight up and was about to pry his hand free any way he could when Hinata suddenly jerked him towards her. Gaara was caught completely off guard and came down on Hinata as she released his hand and instead brought up both arms and wrapped them around his neck as his lips met hers. Shocked stiff would not be enough to describe Gaara's state of mind right now, even turned to stone is an understatement as he was unable to move while Hinata slowly moved away and let him go, revealing a blush that began to dominate his face.

"Sorry…" she mumbled in her sleep.

"Oh, get over it!" she suddenly snapped in a way that Gaara could only guess was her tougher self scolding…well…herself. Gaara finally managed to regain control of his body and fled the scene instantly and quietly as the door opened to reveal Hinata's parents.

"I told you she was asleep, talk to her in the morning." Hinata's mother scolded her husband before she closed the door. Hinata sighed in contentness in her sleep.


End file.
